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Norienne
History Norrienne is an ancient nation with a government going back hundreds of years. It has survived every threat to Ardoth to arise since its inception, both mundane and supernatural, and usually does its fair share to stop the latter in particular. In 496 C.T. in particular, the necromancer pending began gathering undead armies in Ronwick nation and threatened to conquer the continent. Lacking very substantial armies of its own, the Magisters Council comissioned a project for the creation of intelligent constructs that could be used to flesh out their armies. Months later their best golem crafters had developed the Warforged, effective blank slates that could be molded into a magnificent fighting force. The necromancer's forces were dispatched quickly after the Warforged were finally deployed. But tensions rose as some observed the apparent will the Warforged were capable of displaying when pressed - sometimes showing preference for certain superior officers over others. Rebellion against the Council broke out in the council in 623 C.T., but was quickly beaten down by the very Warforged the rebellion sought to free. Geography Norienne lies on the western end of Ronwick. It's relatively flat, lacking any dramatic mountain ranges. It nevertheless has a moderately plentiful supply of mineral wealth (though paltry compared to Bizenmar), particular rare gemstones, which in addition to providing an excellent trade good also serve as quality material components for spells and the crafting of magic items. Politics Norienne is ruled by a hierarchy of wizards, magi, and sorcerers. At the top is the Magisters' Council, a council of the nine most powerful arcanists in the nation (at least in theory). There is one specialist for each school of magic and one universalist, and since the nine most powerful aren't necessarily distributed evenly throughout the different practices, this is almost never actually the case. Exacerbating this issue is the fact that newer wizards tend to focus on the schools whose seats are held by the oldest council members. There are often rumors of attempted assassinations, but most council members die of old age, suggesting that these are just old tales confused for new gossip. The Magisters' Council members seldom pay attention to the day to day needs of the Magocracy, preferring to delegate the bulk of their responsibilities and focus on their research. Economy Agriculture The colder, temperate climate of Norienne doesn't allow for a very productive agrigulctural indsutry. The country depends heavily on trade to develop comfortably large stores of food for winter. Norienne would be capable of self-sufficience on a good year. But if harvests turned out poorly or food was stored improperly, the people would face widespread famine. Magical Services The relative abundance of arcane practitioners in Norienne is generally seen to be a boon to the populace - while the cost of material goods to perform magical services is still dependent on trade and production, the services themselves are cheaper than they would be elsewhere. The market saturation isn't viewed so highly by the practitioners themselves, though. It's not uncommon for younger wizards to embark on journeys to foreign nations where magical goods are more scarce and they can charge more for their services. Trade Magical services don't export very well, and while they pay well, magical goods are in low demand (normal given the prices). Thus most ships that land in Noriennes ports leave lighter than they arrived. The same cannot be said of the coffers of these ships, however. Demographics Norienne is predominantly human , though there is also a sizeable population of halflings and a smattering of small communities of other races. There's also a significant number of warforged, though there's some debate as to whether such constructs should actually count towards the population. Culture Art The relative wealth of the upper class fosters a healthy artistic community. Many learned playwrights are known to have come from here, though so many learn their trade from the local masters that many leave to find audiances in foreign lands (largely limited to those that speak common on a day-to-day basis) Language Most of Norienne's people speak Common as their first language - even the halfling communities (though they still learn to speak halfling). Religion Norienne isn't the most religious region, with the commoners largely borrowing from neighboring cultures and the wealthier generally not caring. The acting community within the nation does actively worship Camua, but it's a relatively small following compared to what many other gods can muster in a given region.